Carlisle Pirelli workers received inflation busting pay rise

By Business Reporter on 21/02/2018 at 10:54am

Over a thousand workers at Pirelli have received an inflation busting 4.5 per cent pay increase this month (February) which means an extra £1,500 for a typical production worker or £1,800 for a production worker on a weekend shift.

The pay deal is part of a two deal worth 7.5 per cent. Workers received a three per cent pay deal in 2017, meaning over the two year period Unite negotiated an extra £2,500 for a typical production worker or £2,953 for a production worker on a weekend shift.

The pay deal once again illustrates the benefits of having a strong trade union negotiate your pay and conditions.

Last month workers at a Japanese firm based in Wigton, Cumbria accepted an extra £1000 a year on their annual salary following talks between the unions and management. The two deals compare favourably to official figures showing average total wages were up by just 2.5 per cent across the economy.

The Pirelli production site at Carlisle employs around 900 workers. The pay deal also applies to Pirelli workers at the Burton on Trent site. The company supplies tyres to Jaguar Land Rover, Volkswagen Audi, Porsche, BMW, Mercedes and Volvo.

Unite regional officer Malcolm Carruthers said: “Having a professional and well organised trade union at work helps to boost your pay. The pay deal at Pirelli has given manufacturing workers a year on year pay boost which makes a real difference to their incomes at a time when pay is falling flat across the economy.

“The deal was negotiated by Unite union representatives who work for Pirelli and it’s a testament to the work they do on behalf of their colleagues.

Last month Unite launched a powerful online tool to help workers secure a fair share of company profits.

Unite’s new online tool will mean that in just a few minutes, union reps can generate a professional pay claim.

At the click of a mouse the tool allows union reps to gather the latest up- to- date information from Companies House, the Office for National Statistics and the union’s own database containing the details of tens of thousands of pay deals. The Pay Claim Generator will help prevent employers from claiming pay increases are not affordable.

The Pay Claim Generator was designed as part of Unite’s industrial strategy entitled Work, Voice, Pay which is about empowering union members by giving them the tools and support in the workplace to help them win at work.